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Democrat Andrew Yang says his plan to give each American citizen $1,000 each month could help Iowans repeatedly affected by flooding to relocate.

Speaking at the Des Moines Register Political Soapbox at the Iowa State Fair Friday, the entrepreneur and presidential candidate said his plan would stimulate the economy and help create new jobs as more are lost to technological advancements.

Democratic presidential candidate Julián Castro told state fairgoers in Des Moines Friday Congress must act in the wake of mass shootings in Texas and Ohio. Before his speech, Castro released a policy plan to “disarm hate” by combating white supremacist violence and enacting gun control measures.

An audience member asked the former San Antonio mayor and Obama cabinet official why he’s not in El Paso, following a mass shooting there last weekend.

Hibiscus blooms can be big and showy, or small and delicate. Growing hibiscus can be an easy way to add a little bit of exotic beauty to your yard or garden.

On this horticulture day edition of Talk of Iowa, host Charity Nebbe and Cindy Haynes, Associate Professor of Horticulture at Iowa State University, chat about how to grow sun-loving, flowering hibiscus plants in Iowa.  

Former Vice President Joe Biden said he has what it takes to strengthen gun laws in the country following mass shootings in Texas and Ohio last weekend. Biden told reporters at the Iowa State Fair Thursday that it violates no one’s Second Amendment right to tell people they can’t own certain weapons like an assault rifle. 

"We can get it done," Biden said. "We can get it done with background checks done. We can get it done because the public is finally at the point that it’s sick of it. It is sick of it. I’ve got it done before and I can get it done again."

A long weekend of political speeches got underway Thursday afternoon at the Iowa State Fair, as Montana Gov. Steve Bullock delivered the first speech at the Des Moines Register’s Political Soapbox.  Candidates get 20 minutes to talk to whoever shows up to listen at a stage along the Grand Concourse.  The crowd for Bullock was pretty thick, though some attendees said they had arrived early to hear former Vice President Joe Biden, who was scheduled to speak about 20 minutes after Bullock concluded.

The Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission recently approved the final rules for betting on professional, college and fantasy sports contests.  On Aug. 15 at noon, legal sports wagering will be allowed in-person and through a moblie app.

Some two dozen presidential candidates have been campaigning in Iowa since way before much of the rest of the country tuned in to the race. Many have been coming here for months, some for years. On the fifth episode of Caucus Land, we'll introduce them to you.

This program originally aired on 8-15-18.

Corn dogs, baby ducks, and a butter cow to boot!

The Iowa State Fair is a time-honored tradition for many Iowans, and has gained a reputation for being one of the largest fairs in the nation.

Do you remember your first fair? 

In 2018, Democrat J.D. Scholten came close to unseating long-time Republican Congressman Steve King in Iowa’s 4th District. Now, Scholten says, he’ll try again in 2020.

On this politics day edition of River to River, host Ben Kieffer talks with political scientists Dennis Goldford of Drake University and Sara Mitchell of the University of Iowa about this race, the politics of gun violence, China's exit from the US Agriculture sector and other political headlines. 

Guests Include:

River to River's "Home State View" series helps us understand how the presidential candidates are viewed as leaders in the states they call home. Host Ben Kieffer interviews journalists who have spent years covering the candidates. We get the little-known details about each hopeful's history. Click the "play" button to listen.

This program originally aired on 1-25-18.

"Wine is to women as duck tape is to men: it fixes everything. " "I make wine disappear, what's your super power?" "I'm dreaming of a white Christmas, but if the white runs out, I'll drink red."

These are supposed to be jokes, but they may also be indicative of a growing problem. During this hour on Talk of Iowa, Charity Nebbe talks with Ann Dowsett-Johnson, author of "Drink: The Intimate Relationship Between Women and Alcohol," about women's relationship with drinking culture. 

In 2016, Lyz Lenz’s life was turned upside down. She found herself questioning her faith, leaving her church and leaving her marriage. She felt that what she was experiencing was part of something bigger.  She set out on a journey to explore how personal faith and congregations were evolving with modern challenges. 

Vacation season is in full swing, and with that, we get a refresher on the most common misconceptions when traveling by plane. On this edition of River to River, host Ben Kieffer speaks with a variety of guests about upcoming changes in the world of traveling via airplane  Specifically, what to do when going through Transportation Security Administration security, and how you can schedule your flight itinerary better.

$16.5 million. That's how much was in the jackpot in 2010, when Eddie Tipton won the lottery after buying the ticket in a Des Moines convenience store. As the security chief at the Multi-State Lottery Association at the time, Tipton was unable to claim the money. He hired a law firm to deliver the winning ticket and keep his name anonymous -- but by then the Iowa Lottery had already suspected something fishy was going on. Tipton had masterminded the biggest lottery fraud in US history. 

Julie Knight met Julie Freese in a candy store in downtown Iowa City in the early 1980s. Knight had been battling Type 1 diabetes since she was ten years old and says she felt like one of the misfit toys from "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer." After moving into a house together on Ash Street the two Julies, of course, became even closer. But their relationship only grew stronger after parting ways in Iowa City.